By Emma Dunn
A British family ditched the rat race to travel to 23 countries and say world schooling has put their children “way ahead” of other kids.
Nikki Collinson-Phenix, 47, had always dreamed of an “adventure” with her husband, Ian, 50, and their children – Laanii, 12, and Raif, six.
She managed to convince Ian, a distance running coach, to travel Europe full time in a caravan and the family have now been on the road for three years and have visited 23 countries including Greece, Turkey and Spain.
Nikki says world schooling both her children has been “powerful” and they are now “way ahead” of other kids their age in education.
Nikki, a remote working consultant, originally from the Isle of Wight, said: “I think my children are way ahead.
“Their confidence is through the roof.
“I want them to be worldly wise.
“I don’t think it is good for kids to be sheltered. I feel they should see the realities of the world.”
Nikki and Ian had become fed up with “rigid” structure of their lives and decided to take the plunge to travel full-time with their kids.
Nikki previously worked as a chiropractor and Ian as a prison officer.
Nikki said: “Life before was like a hamster wheel.
“Everything was to a rigid time.
“It was everything we wanted to move away from.
“I felt like life was rinse and repeat.”
The couple spent two years getting their finances in order and finding remote jobs before leaving the UK in September 2021.
The family set off to France without a plan and have spent the last three years travelling around Europe.
In making the choice to travel full-time, Nikki decided to homeschool her kids.
She said: “We enrolled Laanii in an online school – following the British curriculum.
“Some of what she does is home educated. She has a mix of books and online resources.
“I had thought home educating was sub-standard but it’s been so powerful.”
Nikki’s son, Raif, is completely homeschooled but Nikki is looking to enrol him a similar online school.
She said: “He’s working at the level of an eight-year-old.
“If he’d been in local school he possibly would have been quite disrupted.
“Teachers are restricted with what they can teach.”
The kids spend the morning doing online learning before the family go out to explore.
Nikki said: “We got to museums. We just go and have fun.
“They don’t see us as teachers. They see us as mum and dad.
“They get global and cultural learning.
“They have no fear to giving it a go.
“They have a cultural awareness.
“It’s important for kids to see opportunities they have by seeing cultures who don’t have so much.
“It’s experiences you don’t have at school in the Isle of Wight.”
Nikki loved taking her daughter to Greece – as she expressed an interest in Greek mythology.
She said: “She planned out where she wanted to go.
“We went to see Olympus.”
Nikki also loved visiting Venice, Italy, for her son – who had seen the city in a cartoon.
The family bought a renovation in Bulgaria in May 2023 – but still rent out their home in the Isle of Wight.
The family have an ambition to travel to America.
Nikki said: “We regularly have a meeting to check everyone is happy.
“The moment someone says we’re not feeling it we’ll revaluate.”
Nikki wants others to take the plunge and travel if they have the urge.
She said: “One of my biggest fears is regret. I just thought we have to try it.
“It’s exceeded my expectations.
“People make assumptions that we’re filthy rich. We’re busting that myth.
“Our children are thriving and are over and above what they would have been.”
List of countries the family have visited –
France
Spain
Portugal
Italy
Slovenia
Croatia
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Serbia
Motenegro
Bulgaria
Hungary
Austria
Germany
Belgium
Luxenbourg
Czech Republic
Slovakia
Romania
Turkey
Albania
Greece
Kosovo
North Macedonia
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